Iron Harvest: When Farming Becomes Conquest
Chapter 216 - 21: Survival of the Fittest

Chapter 216: Chapter 21: Survival of the Fittest

The last month of summer arrived.

The temperature grew increasingly hot.

The farmers responsible for planting would usually drink cold boiled water from wooden barrels, but now it has turned into iced tea.

The advantage of the large kitchen is its high efficiency and the significant fuel savings it offers.

In June, all the farmers would leave early and return late, taking a break at noon for four or five hours.

They needed to deeply cultivate five thousand acres of wasteland this month, planting vegetables and crops suitable for autumn harvest.

Why was it so urgent to plant the land?

It’s naturally to prepare for the incoming population.

Roman paid a heavy price, tearing apart the entire Kant Territory, so how could he only migrate one batch of the population?

Not everyone, but at least ten thousand people need to be brought over this year.

How can they be supported without farming?

As for the land in Kant Territory, it was basically abandoned by Roman.

It can be taken, but there’s no need.

Unless the mountains are breached and bridges are built, it’s difficult for Roman to maintain the lands beyond.

Transferring them over here is the best solution.

...

While Roman was planning on land reclamation and farming,

The temporarily set up oil press workshop started producing oil.

The quality of the soybeans wasn’t good, and the oil yield was low, under 10%.

Five thousand pounds of soybeans only produced about four hundred pounds of soybean oil.

The benefits of cooking oil are many.

However, placing it in the large kitchen, it was used up in at most two days, far from sufficient.

But using it to make soap, it meant about four hundred pounds, enough to cut into two thousand bars of soap.

Rounding up, each of Roman’s soldiers could have a bar of soap.

Used sparingly, it would last half a month.

And this is the purpose of Roman making soap.

Keeping the soldiers clean and relatively odor-free is considered one of the soldiers’ life benefits.

This is only the first batch of soybean oil.

Roman would eventually obtain about four thousand pounds of soybean oil.

Again, using it for cooking is impossible.

Living without cooking oil before, we will continue living the same way in the future.

The best use is in making soap, maintaining, and repairing weapons.

But making soap requires manpower.

Scale production can undoubtedly increase efficiency.

However, the initial investment in new industries is indispensable.

The soap Roman made, though not as delicate and mild as modern soap, is better than none.

...

A few days later.

Sige Town experienced a heavy summer rainstorm.

It came later than last year’s, and the elders in Sige Town said there are always one or two such storms every year.

Actually, it’s not too bad.

Because, from the Thorny Peninsula, ruled by the King of Ice Island, to the fjords of the King of Divine Mystery, and from half of Black Iron Land to Igo Land.

Those places are hot and dry in the summer, with mild and rainy winters.

Suitable for planting only spring wheat, harvested once a year.

The land where Roman was located was much better, capable of producing two harvests a year, which was quite excellent.

The climate was suitable, precipitation was even, river networks were dense, water was plentiful, conducive to crop growth without additional irrigation.

The benefit of heavy rain is that it nurtures rapid crop growth.

The downside is that weeds and pastures would also grow wildly.

Moreover, Roman had to halt labor during the heavy rain.

He had checked the weather forecast; the heavy rain would last only two days, so he provided food for everyone a day in advance, allowing them to take it home as sustenance for the next two days.

He also used this opportunity to let them rest for two days.

Times were different now; Roman had a lot of manpower to mobilize, so he was particularly unhurried.

The margin for error was greatly increased.

In one word, stable!

The farmers were even less worried.

During this time, they had realized what was going on.

To hell with it, having been poor citizens all their lives, they were now eating government-provided meals.

Guaranteed harvest come drought or flood, with full life protection, what more could they ask for?

However, the soldiers in the barracks still needed to train in the pouring rain.

Jet, Dick, Aaron, Green, Kao, and at this moment, were leading all the soldiers on a long-distance run in the heavy rain.

Each team captain was responsible for their soldiers; if one person fell behind, the entire team was punished.

What was being honed was their will, and what was being trained was their physique.

...

Nillie found Roman on this rainy day.

He was sitting on a chair, using a pencil to plan out future developments on paper.

"Master, I need to discuss something with you."

Her face was haggard, somewhat overworked, but her eyes were deep blue and profound, her expression serious.

Nillie said, "I feel it’s necessary to streamline the school."

"Why?"

"Master, do you know how many students there are now?"

Without waiting for Roman to answer, Nillie continued, "2459 students!"

Children aged five to fifteen had all been crammed in by Roman. The current size could only be described as extremely bloated, operating was very difficult, almost no room to move.

Nillie handed over a stack of student name lists.

Roman immediately understood, Nillie had come prepared.

He sat up and said, "Tell me in detail."

"The concern isn’t the classroom, nor the teachers, nor the paper and pencil, but the students themselves!"

Nillie said,

"You don’t discriminate between good or bad, between male or female, hoping to cultivate them into useful talents, but some people don’t love learning as you thought, it’s a torture for them."

To put it simply, some people just can’t learn no matter how you teach them.

Being late, skipping class, handing in blank exams, the oddballs are everywhere.

Roman fell into contemplation, knowing that learning goes against human nature.

Even more developed societies can’t solve this problem.

Let alone with current conditions.

He hadn’t really focused on the school much; previously, there weren’t many students, but now, amidst a population boom, and he attended classes less frequently, sometimes only going once every four or five days, teaching for a few hours before leaving.

He didn’t care about trivial matters.

Now it seems he had underestimated the issue, with too much on his plate to consider everything thoroughly.

Seeing Roman silent, Nillie thought he hadn’t taken it in.

He had high hopes for those students, seeing them as the cornerstone of the future.

What he believed in would never change.

But she had to persuade him.

"Master, I’m not shirking my responsibility, I will nurture the seedlings into talents, but I can’t rejuvenate dead trees. Those dead trees have taken too much of your resources and the school’s resources, leaving us physically and mentally exhausted, only neglecting truly good seedlings..." Nillie anxiously said.

Roman pressed his hand down, signaling her to calm down.

Nillie was now acting principal.

She had once begged Roman to lend her soldiers to take back Sea Castle, becoming its new master.

Sea Castle was crippled, but a starved camel is still bigger than a horse.

Sea Castle’s remaining population was still larger than all the people Roman currently controlled.

It’s a huge piece of fat, and Roman will help Nillie take it back.

Because he needed Sea Castle to become his shipbuilding base.

But Nillie’s condition to leave was to cultivate a batch of literate grassroots students.

Concerning Nillie’s future, she placed great importance on this matter.

Roman knew, even if out of personal interest, Nillie’s words were the truth, he knew from the bottom of his heart.

"I will be responsible for you, Master! I swear!" She said this lastly, then quietly looked at Roman.

Roman said, "So what is your suggestion?"

"Trim them out, and supply nutrients to the real seedlings," Nillie said.

Roman thought for a long time, then nodded, "I agree. Children above the age of 10, you decide who stays. For those under 10, judge carefully, give them more chances... The most recent batch of students should wait; let’s observe them a bit more."

"You are an enlightened Lord, but I fear those children won’t understand your good intentions," Nillie sighed with relief as she also lamented.

Learning can change destiny.

She had once been enslaved, eventually discovered by Roman, who gave her the status of chamberlain.

But putting her in charge of managing the school was not due to her status; more importantly, Roman had discovered her abilities.

She had some degree of choice, but did other Sea Castle slaves have that?

They had no right to speak before him.

If you don’t improve your value, don’t blame others for considering you worthless.

...

Nillie’s work efficiency was extremely high; by the time the rainstorm ended, she handed Roman a list of six hundred people.

These were the first students to be eliminated.

It was evident she had an outline ready.

As acting principal, she shuttled daily between the school and the manor.

She was smart as snow and diligent enough to basically remember each child’s face and name.

Survival of the fittest, nature’s law.

The school is the same; those who can’t adapt must leave.

They previously enjoyed too many of the extra resources Roman provided them.